1122 - Chapter 44

The heat came on with overwhelming intensity, completely unexpected in a foreign country. But at least this long-delayed heat had finally arrived.

A sleepless night had left Jiang Yi exhausted, drifting in and out of consciousness, only to wake each time with no sign of relief.

The lazy morning light filtered into the room, the air thick with the mingled scents of pheromones, tangled sheets, and scattered clothes, all traces of the night’s frenzy.

“Yi Yi, let’s rest for a bit, okay? You haven’t slept all night. Should I order some food?” Yan Nanchen glanced down at the lump under the blanket pressed against him and gently pulled the covers aside.

His gaze met Jiang Yi’s flushed face, tear-swollen eyes, and sweat-drenched body.

“I still need more.” Jiang Yi lay weakly against Yan Nanchen, his voice thick with exhaustion. His eyes were red-rimmed, his voice hoarse and fragile, almost like a whimper. “Can’t rest.”

Truthfully, he was beyond tired, but the relentless instincts of his heat drove his body to demand more. After holding back for so long, the only signal it sent was an unyielding, desperate need.

By the end, his voice broke from sheer exhaustion.

Yan Nanchen couldn’t help but laugh helplessly. He brushed the damp hair from Jiang Yi’s forehead, lifting him slightly before turning to cradle him in his arms. “You have to rest now. If your heat flares up again, you won’t have any strength left, understand?”

As soon as he spoke, Jiang Yi’s eyes welled up again.

He was about to cry.

“No, more.” Jiang Yi pressed his face against Yan Nanchen’s chest, his voice muffled. “Can’t you keep going?”

Yan Nanchen chuckled, utterly at a loss.

Honestly, he rarely saw Jiang Yi like this so clingy, so tearful. Normally, this man had a temper that practically demanded dominance, especially as an Alpha. Yan Nanchen had always been the one led by him. But now, after presenting as an Omega, Jiang Yi had gained a new softness, a spoiled stubbornness that felt almost like a plea.

But it was also the truth Yan Nanchen couldn’t bring himself to be too rough with him, which was why he hadn’t yet stimulated Jiang Yi’s birth cavity.

Now, though, he had no choice. He gave Jiang Yi a nutrient injection and went one more round.

This time, Jiang Yi truly cried himself to exhaustion. His body was too worn out to reach the peak of his heat, the point where his birth cavity would open. Even after the entire night and this morning’s efforts, he still couldn’t climax.

He curled up in Yan Nanchen’s arms, too drained to do anything but shed silent tears.

When it was over, Yan Nanchen held him close, murmuring soothing words, heart aching at how utterly spent he was. “No more, okay?”

Perhaps realizing that even this wasn’t enough to push Jiang Yi’s heat to its peak, Yan Nanchen felt helpless. After more than five years without a heat, Jiang Yi’s body was already weak. If he pushed too hard today, there was no telling if Jiang Yi could endure it.

He knew Jiang Yi’s body couldn’t sustain this for long, yet the relentless waves of heat kept driving him, forcing his exhausted body to respond again and again. It had only been a day, and Yan Nanchen hadn’t even exerted much effort, yet he was already feeling the strain.

What were they going to do for the next few days?

“So it’s not that I can’t, it’s that you can’t.” Jiang Yi lay on Yan Nanchen’s chest, his voice muffled as he kept his eyes closed. “You couldn’t open my birth cavity that means you’re the one who can’t.”

Yan Nanchen chuckled helplessly, indulging his complaints as he placed a hand over Jiang Yi’s forehead, coaxing him to sleep. “Be good, rest for a while first.”

“It’s definitely you who can’t.” Jiang Yi mumbled, eyelids growing heavy under the soothing touch of that large hand, gradually drifting into sleep.

Completely unaware of the deepening gaze fixed upon him.

Yan Nanchen watched the sleeping Jiang Yi, his thumb gently brushing over the swollen eyelids from crying. As if remembering something, he leaned close to Jiang Yi’s ear and whispered, “Sweetheart, when you wake up, I’ll show you whether this puppy can or not.”

About ten minutes later, he carried Jiang Yi to the bathroom to wash him, taking the opportunity to have someone tidy up the room.

Throughout this, Jiang Yi remained in such deep sleep that no matter how he was handled, he didn’t wake clear evidence of how thoroughly exhausted and drained he was.

After drying him off and carrying him out of the bathroom, Yan Nanchen found the room already cleaned and the bedding changed. He settled Jiang Yi into bed before walking to the floor-to-ceiling window to make a call.

The morning light streamed into the room, softened by the sheer curtains, illuminating the several scratch marks on Yan Nanchen’s toned and firm back.

The moment the call connected, Yan Nanchen heard a groggy, pained complaint from the other end.

“Big brother, it’s still the middle of the night here. I just fell asleep, and you drag me awake with a call.”

It was Chu Beiheng.

“Bro, I need to talk to you about something urgent,” Yan Nanchen said.

Perhaps because his younger brother’s tone was unusually serious, the half-asleep Chu Beiheng roused slightly, already guessing what could make Yan Nanchen this anxious. “Don’t tell me something happened to Jiang Yi?”

“Yeah, his Heat started.”

Chu Beiheng: “…” After a few seconds, he punched his pillow several times. “Yan Nanchen, are you asking for a beating? This is your emergency, what does it have to do with me? What could possibly involve me here?”

His voice was practically tearful, what kind of fate was this? Since when was his younger brother’s lover’s Heat any of his business? He didn’t want to know at all! All he wanted was to sleep. He was exhausted.

“I probably won’t be able to return for the next half month,” Yan Nanchen admitted. “Yi Yi hasn’t had a Heat in too long. It’s worse than expected, and it might last longer.”

Chu Beiheng listened with utter despair, silently holding the phone away. “I don’t want to hear these details. Just say what you need to say so I can go back to sleep. Don’t you know how much work there is in your own company? I’m dead tired.”

“I might need you to look after Qiao Qiao for a few days.”

Chu Beiheng burst into laughter. “Ha, hahaha.” But his laughter soon died, his expression blank. “Haven’t I looked after Qiao Qiao enough, huh? Five years wasn’t it me who raised her through thick and thin? Did you do it? No, you didn’t.”

Yan Nanchen coughed, well aware of how much he owed his brother. “I know, bro. I really am grateful for all these years. How about I have Dad transfer another half of my shares in Galaxy Group to you?”

“Yan Nanchen, do you know why I stayed abroad studying for so many years? Until I got my Ph.D., and then a second one?”

“I know.”

Chu Beiheng was furious: “You don’t know shit! If you really understood, you wouldn’t be handing over your shares to me and giving me my freedom back!”

Yan Nanchen glanced back at Jiang Yi sleeping on the bed before lowering his voice: “Bro, keep it down. If you wake Yi Yi up, he’ll cling to me again wanting more.”

“I don’t care, I won’t listen. I don’t want Galaxy Group.” Chu Beiheng stared despairingly at the ceiling: “First you, now Duan Yizhou too. Wasn’t the group something you all built through blood and sweat? Just giving it away like that don’t you have any competitive spirit at all, huh?”

His cousin Luo Songran was currently on a world tour, while his brother-in-law Duan Yizhou’s Neptune Tech Group also needed his help managing. Not to mention his twin nephews back home that he had to look after.

Now this. His workload just kept growing.

No amount of money could heal his fragile heart.

“Bro, just half a month. After we return home, I’ll give you a proper break, okay?”

Chu Beiheng chuckled without responding. He didn’t see anything worth looking forward to, only endless tasks waiting for him.

After hanging up, he stared at his brother’s contact, suddenly remembering something. He rolled out of bed and headed to the study.

Quickly booting up his computer, he logged into his account under the alias “J,” compressed the prepared pregnancy photo album, and sent a message from this virtual account to Yan Nanchen:

[1,200 pregnancy photos spanning ten months. 600 million. Want them?]

The reply came almost instantly: [Yes.]

Within moments, 600 million hit his account.

Chu Beiheng calmly shut down the computer, stood up, and walked back to the bedroom, raising an eyebrow: “Bedtime.”

On the other end, Yan Nanchen browsed through the high-resolution, uncensored photos sent to his phone, all documenting Jiang Yi’s pregnancy, from the slight swell to the full curve of his belly. His gaze lingered on Jiang Yi’s pregnant stomach in the photos, stirring emotions in his chest.

He hadn’t been there for a single day of Jiang Yi’s pregnancy, a regret and guilt he could never make up for.

These nearly daily photos who else could have taken them besides those closest to Jiang Yi?

Yan Nanchen seemed to realize something as he glanced at Jiang Yi still sound asleep in bed. He’d once suspected “J” might be Jiang Yi, but clearly that wasn’t the case. “J” was someone else entirely.

He set one photo of Jiang Yi’s slightly rounded belly under a shirt as his wallpaper, put his phone down, and joined Jiang Yi in bed to rest.

By evening, Jiang Yi woke up.

This awakening signaled another night of madness ahead.

This time, Yan Nanchen held nothing back. Whispering tender, affectionate words while moving without mercy, he fully opened Jiang Yi’s birth cavity amid his sobs.

After five years, they completed the complete marking once again.

The Heat indeed lasted longer than expected, a full ten days before it finally ended. Afterward, Jiang Yi ran a fever for two more days and only returned home after it broke.

Due to health concerns, Yan Nanchen took him straight to the hospital for a full checkup after landing, worried the prolonged Heat might have adversely affected him.

Surprisingly, the doctor found nothing wrong. Instead, they said it was a good sign the arrival of an omega’s Heat indicated their body had matured during this period. They just needed some time to recuperate.

“Also, I should remind you that there’s a possibility of another Heat occurring in a short period. It’s recommended to focus on nutrition during this time.”

Jiang Yi’s lower back tensed instinctively as he listened. He glanced at Yan Nanchen and immediately met his faintly amused gaze. Lowering his eyes, he adjusted his glasses silently, pretending nothing had happened.

He would never provoke Yan Nanchen so casually again.

This Alpha was at the peak of his youth, physically in his prime. Despite taking antidepressants, it seemed his stamina remained unaffected. At the start of his Heat, Jiang Yi had even wondered if his kidneys were failing, why else couldn’t his birth cavity open?

But by nightfall, one forceful thrust shattered that illusion.

Too ruthless.

“If you experience fatigue or drowsiness, remember to get a blood test to check for pregnancy.”

Jiang Yi froze, staring at the doctor in shock. “What?”

The doctor explained, “You can still conceive. It might not happen immediately, but if your Heat cycles become frequent, the chances are high. So, keep your mind and body at ease, let nature take its course, and continue loving your Alpha. There shouldn’t be any issues.”

Jiang Yi glanced at Yan Nanchen again.

And then he noticed Yan Nanchen’s eyes were red.

Yan Nanchen knelt on one knee before him, taking his hand from his lap and looking up hesitantly, as if afraid to ask. “Yi Yi, if—”

Jiang Yi guessed what he meant Yan Nanchen was worried he’d be afraid, after losing Nian Nian.

Was he afraid?

Yes, he was.

The pain of that loss was seared into his soul, unforgettable. But if there was a chance, he still wanted it not as a replacement, but as healing.

“I want it.” Jiang Yi lowered his gaze, fingertips brushing over Yan Nanchen’s knuckles, his own eyes growing damp. “Puppy, I want a son.”

At those words, Yan Nanchen’s eyes reddened completely. He bowed his head, laughing softly, then pressed his forehead reverently against Jiang Yi’s hand. “Okay. We’ll try.”

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